Meaning of 上周
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- last week
How to use 上周
上周 is a time word that usually goes before the verb or at the start of the sentence. It is a bit more formal or written than 上个星期 (shàng ge xīngqī), but both are common in speech. Example: 我上周去了北京。(Wǒ shàng zhōu qù le Běijīng.) I went to Beijing last week.
上 (shàng) means up or above, and 周 (zhōu) means week. Picture a calendar where earlier weeks sit higher on the page, so the week "above" this one is last week.
Common mistake: Learners often put 上周 at the end of the sentence like English "last week", as in 我去了北京上周. In Chinese the time word comes before the verb: 我上周去了北京. Also remember that 下周 (xià zhōu) means next week, not last week.
上周 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
上 shàng · up · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
周 zhōu · week · 8 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
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- 8
Related words
Words that share a character with 上周.
| 马上 | mǎshàng | at once; right away |
| 晚上 | wǎnshang | evening; night |
| 身上 | shēnshang | on the body; at hand |
| 早上 | zǎoshang | early morning |
| 上次 | shàng cì | last time |
| 路上 | lùshang | on the road; on the way; en route |
| 上班 | shàngbān | to go to work; to be on duty |
| 上车 | shàng chē | to get on or into (a bus, train, car etc) |
| 地上 | dìshang | on the ground; on the floor |
| 楼上 | lóu shàng | upstairs; (Internet slang) previous poster in a forum thread |
| 车上 | chē shang | |
| 上学 | shàngxué | to go to school; to attend school |
Questions about 上周
What does 上周 mean?
上周 (shàng zhōu) means "last week".
How do you write 上周?
上周 is made of 2 characters: 上 (3 strokes), 周 (8 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.
Is 上周 an HSK word?
Yes. 上周 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 上周 and 上个星期?
They mean the same thing: last week. 上周 is shorter and a little more formal, while 上个星期 (shàng ge xīngqī) sounds more casual. Note that 上周 does not take 个 in between.
How do I say "the week before last" in Chinese?
You can say 上上周 (shàng shàng zhōu) or 上上个星期 (shàng shàng ge xīngqī). Doubling 上 moves you one more step back in time. In the same way, 下下周 (xià xià zhōu) means the week after next.